Heartland

I'd like one of these:

British cars? Like this one?



Me want!!

Speaking of, how could I have forgotten *this* beaut?!

timsinister wrote:Had no idea there were so many petrolhead Heartlanders!

Pffffft. I've been into classic/muscle cars (and bikes) since I was a wee lass!

This is my drive:



I still dream of classic cars though, some day I'll get me one of these, I'm sure



Just gorgeous (there are plenty others, but this one just stays on top for real long now)

Girls and heavy technology...it's all good!

If we're picking and choosing...



Early morning commute becomes a joy of depleted uranium rounds and armour plate.

Pussy.




IZ.

dreamcar

This is our dreamcar, and hey yeah we own one...

don't know why i feel a déjà vu, when i'm looking into another replay to this thread.

You are quite right, Bartek. Still...
@ Euphoria. The Vantage Volante presents one of the nicest designed fronts of all cars ever!
..sadly they had used up their ideas when they got around to the tail. Still, one of the utterly most beautyfull ones.

Back to earlier in the thread:

I'm not so into American muscle cars. All brute force and no finesse. Ever heard of steering guys? (I guess it's because there are no bends or corners on your roads... )

That's because there's nothing to turn off to! I've seen pictures of Nebraska...

markfiend wrote:I'm not so into American muscle cars. All brute force and no finesse. Ever heard of steering guys? (I guess it's because there are no bends or corners on your roads... )

1. I love 'em purely for their aesthetics; as I've never actually had the pleasure of driving one, I have no idea how they handle.

b. Hmm? I don't get it..?

pi. You've never been to New England, have you..?

aleph: That's fairy nuff then. And TBH I'm only going by reputation.
blue: I don't know...
i: Never left Europe

Remembering some data sheet for the Dodge Charger (I think it was the 1969 one) saying the weight was only slightly over a ton, but the 6.9 Liter engine banged out some 400 SAE horsepowers I suppose the trick mainly is having a *very* gentle foot on the accelerator for going around corners quickly, but it was reported to corner in a rather european car style.
It's not like the american car makers don't know how to make decent cars.
They just need different ones in the vast areas of the Great Plains outback.
I remember a track test where the 1991 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 beat the Ferrari Testarossa in some points. Now who's going to accuse Ferrari of building cars with bad roadholding?
Honestly: The Corvette *is* on my list of dream cars.

The only sports car I've ever owned was a 1989 Nissan 300ZX. "Champahgne" colored, tinted windows, t-tops. When she ran, she was an absolute beast. Alas, mysterious electrical problems led to her demise. There was nothing better than tearing across Texas on a cool spring (or fall) night, with the windows down and the t-tops off, blasting early Sisters singles...

eotunun wrote:I suppose the trick mainly is having a *very* gentle foot on the accelerator for going around corners quickly

*Cough* Erm...not exactly. In driver's ed courses over here, one's taught to go around corners with foot on brake (decreasing from traveling speed to turning speed), to ease off the brake slowly while in the turn, and then to hit the gas gently to complete it.
But I digress. Around here, there are loads of roads with hairpin turns. If you went around those corners quickly in *any* car, you'd likely end up in the oncoming traffic lane (at best) or in a guardrail, over an embankment, or flipped over in someone's yard (at worst).

eotunun wrote:It's not like the american car makers don't know how to make decent cars. They just need different ones in the vast areas of the Great Plains outback.

They do? Why, exactly? There are speed limits over here, remember (rather draconian in some places, imho) and ooooodles of cops just waiting to enforce them (with equally-draconian fines).

Hey sultan2075 do you own the PT Cruiser in your avatar? That is actually my dream car but in black. If you do own one would you recommend them as a good buy?

SINsister wrote:1. I love 'em purely for their aesthetics; as I've never actually had the pleasure of driving one, I have no idea how they handle.

It's a shame really, there's quite some Americans out there who've got a good idea of how to style a car, but it all goes tits up in the execution.Why do they never manage to stick trim panels in that don't rattle, just fit together on the whole or don't feel like bargain bin items. A real shame... Drives often lack lots of finesse compared to European equivalents, which is a shame too...

SINsister wrote:

eotunun wrote:It's not like the american car makers don't know how to make decent cars. They just need different ones in the vast areas of the Great Plains outback.

They do? Why, exactly? There are speed limits over here, remember (rather draconian in some places, imho) and ooooodles of cops just waiting to enforce them (with equally-draconian fines).

We have speed limits and cops

DOZMEISTER wrote:Hey sultan2075 do you own the PT Cruiser in your avatar? That is actually my dream car but in black. If you do own one would you recommend them as a good buy?

If you like lorry driving, it would be... We had one as a replacement car some time ago, truly ghastly thing. Outside it looks retro, inside it's just plain old fashioned and cramped

DOZMEISTER wrote:Hey sultan2075 do you own the PT Cruiser in your avatar? That is actually my dream car but in black. If you do own one would you recommend them as a good buy?

Actually, yeah, I do--well, not that one specifically, but the same color, etc. I've been very pleased with it in terms of reliability. We've got a 2005, that we've had for about 3 or 4 years now (we bought it with 2000 miles on it). I have had absolutely zero problems with it, and I've kept up with the maintenance schedule. It's nice to drive, because you sit a little bit higher up than in a car, but not as high as in truck. It also has ton of room--the rear seats fold down/forward (I think they're also removable), and the passenger seat in the front can fold forward to extend the cargo space even more. Obviously, YMMV, but I've been very pleased.

@Zed: I can't really say that. Both my uncles own Buicks, and I found those cars were in rather nice shape, both being well over ten years old when they bought them. My Austrian uncle's 1981 Buick Electra still is in nice condition. Take a look at Mercedeses or BMWs of the same age, that will be quite a dissapointment. I never understood the hype made about those brands anyway: The engines last not too long, unless they are four cylinder inline, V6 or V8, which, due to the shorte cylinder heads have less trouble with wearing off the cylinder head gasket by thermal expansion. But then, look at the standard 350cui V8s from Usa: Engines that run half a million miles are not rare there.. The 3,5 litre Rover V8 and the 5,3 litre from the Opel Diplomat were Buick designs as well. Very agile and powerfull machines!
While the quality of the interior of the premium limousines by Mercedes and BMW appeared like a bad joke to me compared to, for example, a Jaguar.
I drove BMW 750s and 850s as well as Mercedes S class and Jaguars when I worked at a car dealer's in Bonn during my studies, and must say those german premium cars were nothing but vulgar cheap shite compared to the Jags. ..and way more expensive than the real luxury car!

@Sinnie: When you want to go around a corner really quickly you'd better be ready with breaking when the cornering start! The tire only offers a distinct amount of force it can develope gripping into the road. When centrifual force and breaking/accelerating forces have to share of that amount, each component will have less of the grip available. While this method is fine when you go sensibly and calm, it's not what you'll need going (n)utterly fast!

eotunun wrote:I suppose the trick mainly is having a *very* gentle foot on the accelerator for going around corners quickly

Why I've always preferred European/Japanese cars: count three reflectors, hard right/left, controlled skid...accelerate!

Anthea, I like your style. That's a job for an MG A you describe there.

eotunun wrote: Anthea, I like your style. That's a job for an MG A you describe there.

Actually, a technique taught me by a bf in a brand-spanking-new one of these (the one on the right, that is):



Unsurprisingly, he went on write for Car and Driver...

eotunun wrote:@Sinnie: When you want to go around a corner really quickly you'd better be ready with breaking when the cornering start! The tire only offers a distinct amount of force it can develope gripping into the road. When centrifual force and breaking/accelerating forces have to share of that amount, each component will have less of the grip available. While this method is fine when you go sensibly and calm, it's not what you'll need going (n)utterly fast!

Ummmmm...Jums? What part of "go around corners with foot on brake (decreasing from traveling speed to turning speed)" didn't make sense?